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The present invention relates to medical connectors for blood transfer, intravenous fluid supply, medication dosage and the like.
My prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,273,533 issued Dec. 28, 1993 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,306,243 issued Apr. 26, 1994 each disclose a medical connector valve which employs an elastomeric valve element in the form of an elastomeric septum or fluid barrier disposed in a two part plastic housing. The septum is pierced by an upstream pointed cannula to make the fluid connection. Disconnection of the flow line allows the elastomer to re-seal the connector. Valve opening and closing is regulated by rotating a fluid line connection with respect to a housing in which the cannula and septum are mounted. Such connectors are relatively expensive due to the presence of a cannula and the mounting thereof and are increasingly more likely to leak or become contaminated with particulate material of the septum due to repeated use. Current Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements dictate that medical flowline connectors not remain connected for more than 24 hours at a time. For this reason, disconnection of the flowlines and decontamination of the connector and flowlines, as by swabbing with alcohol, is at least a daily occurrence. Thus, these connectors may be actuated or cycled many times and must remain leak free and reliably avoid introduction of contaminants such as cotton fibers from swabs used to clean the connectors into the flowline.
Medical connectors which use resilient flow barriers which are repeatedly pierced during use of the connector become more subject to fluid leakage with increased actuation cycles, particularly if connected in an infusion pump line which may subject the connector to pressures as high as 27 psi. My prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,954 issued Sept. 7, 1999, the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses a needleless connector which is addressed to the above concerns and which includes relatively rotatable male and female Luer connectors with an eccentricly positioned flow passageway at the inner end of the female Luer connector. A removable plastic plug, permanently attached to the connector by a strap, and which fulfills the function of a cleansing swab for the female Luer connector is also optionally provided as disclosed in my prior patent.
Although the removable plug when properly used closes the female Luer when the female Luer is not connected to a flowline, it has been found in practice that additional manipulation of the plug is required for proper use and that the plug can inadvertently become dislodged leaving the female Luer open to atmosphere and possible contamination. Accordingly, a more reliable and easy to use stopper for the female Luer part of the connector which will always remain in proper position yet which will permit connection/disconnection of the male Luer end of a flowline to/from the connector valve without extra motion or steps is desired. Preferably such a stopper should have an exterior surface which essentially completely closes the otherwise open end of the female Luer, the surface being swabbable without introducing fibers or other contaminants interiorly of the stopper into the female Luer.
It is the primary objective of the present invention to provide a medical connector which includes an otherwise open female Luer end which is closed with a swabbable elastomeric stopper when the female Luer is not connected to a flowline and which is longitudinally slidable in and which remains in the female Luer part of the connector regardless of whether a flowline is connected thereto.
The present invention accordingly provides a needle-less medical connector having a longitudinal axis and interconnected relatively rotatable parts aligned on said axis whereby relative rotation of said parts opens and closes a fluid flow path through said connector, at least one of said parts comprising a female Luer, said connector further including an elastomeric stopper having an exterior end surface and a flow passageway extending therethrough, said stopper being slidably fitted into said female Luer for axial movement of said stopper with respect to said female Luer and a spring engaged with said stopper and with said female Luer for retaining said stopper in said female Luer and urging said stopper outwardly of said female Luer when said spring is compressed, said spring having an uncompressed length such that said exterior end surface of said stopper is proximate an end of said female Luer.
The present invention further provides a needle-less medical connector having a longitudinal axis and interconnected relatively rotatable parts aligned on said axis whereby relative rotation of said parts opens and closes a fluid flow path through said connector, at least one of said parts comprising a female Luer, said connector further including an elastomeric stopper having an exterior end surface and a flow passageway extending therethrough, said stopper being slidably fitted into said female Luer for axial movement of at least a portion of said stopper with respect to said female Luer, said elastomeric stopper having an integrally formed resilient skirt affixed to said female Luer, said resilient skirt being axially compressible in said female Luer when engaged by a male Luer end of a fluid flowline to urge said end surface outwardly of said female Luer, said stopper having an uncompressed length such that said exterior end surface is proximate an end of said female Luer.